Princesses Don't Need To Be Rescued
by ladynightsky
Summary: AU Based off Sleeping Beauty. Musa’s fallen for a guy she doesn’t even know. Her father announces her marriage to a Prince she’s sure she’ll hate. So which will she choose? Loyalty to her father? Or to the man she loves? Heavy MxR
1. The Princess and Her Prince

**Princesses Don't Need To Be Rescued**

By: LadyNightSky

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Summary: MUCH AU Based off Sleeping Beauty. Musa's fallen for a guy she doesn't even know. Her father announces her marriage to a Prince she's sure she'll hate. So which will she choose? Loyalty to her father? Or to the man she loves? Heavy MxR

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Disclaimer: I don't own Winx Club; it belongs to Ignio Straffi and Rainbow S.R.L. And I don't own 'Sleeping Beauty'…I'm not sure if anyone does. Oh yeah, and I don't own _Promiscuous _by Nelly Furtado , which is the song in italics.

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**A/N: Heh, another fic. I know I shouldn't start another one and just work with my old ones, but this idea has been hanging around my head too long. Hope you enjoy and R&R please!**

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Chapter One: The Princess and Her Prince

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(This is not a songfic, in case you were wondering) 

_Roses are red_

_Some diamonds are blue  
_

_Chivalry is dead  
_

_But you're still kinda cute…_

**Musa moved in time with the song pulsing through her headphones, spinning and singing softly.**

_I'm a big girl I can handle myself  
_

_But if I get lonely I'ma need your help  
_

_Pay attention to me I don't talk for my health_

**"Musa!"**

_Baby we can keep it on the low_

_Let your guard down ain't nobody gotta know_

**"Musa!"**

_Don't be mad, don't get mean_

_Don't get mad, don't be mea-_

Musa started, her eyes flying open in surprise as her headphones were pulled off her head, not all too gently.

Her father was standing before her, scowling lightly.

"Musa! I called you twice! You have to get ready for the Day of the Royals party in Magix. It's already 7:30, the party starts at 8:00."

"Alright Dad…now get out so I can change." said Musa grudgingly.

He left with a "Hurry then!", and Musa plopped down on her ridiculously pink and frilly canopy bed. She scowled at her equally pink and frilly room, and sighed.

She'd already resigned herself to attending this stupid party thing, to make her dad happy, just as she'd resigned herself to letting her father redecorate her room so it looked like 'a proper Princess's room". Which meant frills. And pink. The things she'd do to make her dad happy.

Ever since her mother had died, her father had become a stranger to her, all decorum and politeness and music hating. Before, his motto was "Manners be damned."

She heaved another sigh, and slowly got up to got to the white antique wardrobe standing in the corner. She kept her clothes in a plain, sensible bureau at the foot of her bed. The wardrobe was where she kept the lacy ball gowns her dad had insisted be custom made to her exact size.

She selected the least fancy gown, a blood red strapless silk, and slipped it on. Making grotesque faces, she undid her pigtails and put her dark hair up into a casual bun. Suddenly grinning wickedly, she sat down at her vanity, and started having fun with her make up. She'd always had a flair for the dramatic.

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He thrashed his way through the thick trees, branches leaning down to scratch viciously at his face. He felt a drop of blood slip down his cheek from a cut on his forehead.

_Wonderful,_ he thought. _I'm bleeding._

He swung his violet-colored blade in a wide arc, so that the skinnier branches all around him fell to the ground with soft thuds.

Sitting down on a fallen log, he pulled out his canteen and gulped down some water. After his father had announced that he had to marry some Princess from the Musical Nebula, he'd grabbed all he'd needed for survival and sped off into the forest surrounding his realm. The first few hours, he'd been so angry that he hadn't paid attention to where he was going, so now, lo and behold, he was lost.

Luckily, he'd found a passably clean stream, and had followed it until it had flowed into a bigger river. Here, there was a plentiful supply of edible berries and fruits and fresh water. After his first night though, he noticed peculiar things happening. No matter how many trees he chopped down in the daytime, they always grew back during the night, and when he awoke in the morning, it seemed like he'd never been there. So every dawn, he chopped down the same trees he'd chopped down the previous day.

His clothes were still pretty much intact, as he'd been levabike racing when his damned father had announced the news, and since he hadn't stopped to change, he was still wearing a heavy duty levabike suit. He looked pretty fine for days in the wilds of Relkaine. Even though everyone said royalty were wimps, Prince Riven wasn't half bad at the survival thing.

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Musa's fists balled up by her sides. She couldn't BELIEVE this. The moment her father had caught sight of her made-up face, he'd gone on a tirade before even letting her explain. She was too angry to listen until something caught her ear. 

"…and what will your fiancé think, Musa? He'll call off your engagement and-"

"Hold on! My _fiancé_? Since when do I have a fiancé? Please don't tell me you've got me an arranged marriage!"

"Well I-"

"Oh my gawd, you have. OH MY FRIGGIN GOD! Did you even think to ask me if I wanted to get married first? Huh? Did you?"

"Now, now, Musa, I'm sure he's perfectly nice, don't overreact-"

"OVERREACT? **OVERREACT?** I'm overreacting? You have just ruined my life in the space of three minutes, see who's overreacting! I can't believe you did this to me! You're my goddamn father! Whatever happened to loving me? Ever since mom died, you've been like this! Why? WHY? I HATE YOU!"

She ran out of the marble floored hall of the palace, trying hard to hold back the hot tears that threatened to spill down her cheeks at any moment.

This was not the way she'd wanted it to go. She'd wanted to remind her dad of the old times, when he used to call her his muse and ruffle her hair and tell her stories; before her mother died. Mom had used to put make-up on her in silly patterns, and then she'd go squealing to Daddy, who'd laugh and cuddle her. Today, she'd thought her make-up would elicit a laugh, or even a small smile, from him. She had been sadly mistaken.

Her heart ached with sadness, with the old pain of losing her mother, with the new pain of her father wanting to be rid of her. The only thing she could think of now was to run, far, far away.

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Riven whacked determinedly at a particularly stubborn trunk. He was almost positive that it hadn't been this hard yesterday. Or the day before. 

Ugh. He had to rest if he wanted to keep cutting the wood down. He sat down on the debris covered floor, and took a long draft from his canteen. As he wiped his mouth on his sleeve, something glowing faintly caught his eye. It came from the tree he'd been struggling to cut down. He scooted closer, peering inquisitively at the bark, trying to detect the flash again.

His surprised scream echoed ominously through trough the small grove of trees.

**A/N: So, what doya think? Like, hate, whatever, just review please!**

**And for those of you that are bugging me for not updating Is Love Really Forever? and To Love a Traitor, SORRY!**

**I'm really running on a tight schedule, and I'm out of good ideas. An update will be up as soon as I can manage. Until then, SIT TIGHT and please DO NOT send me anymore messages or I will go insane! Thank you. :) **


	2. IMPORTANT! READ PLEASE!

**Author's Note**

**Yes, I know doesn't allow us to post Author's Notes as chapters, but this is very serious.**

**There's an author named SkYzLiLLGuRLiEE that has been reposting both **

**Is Love Really Forever? and Princesses Don't Need To Be Rescued.**

**I have asked her stop, but she is calling me a "nasty jealus bitch".**

**Just wanted to let you guys know that she DOES NOT have my permission to repost my writing, and please do not…encourage her to steal more.**

**Bee**


	3. Warm Honey and Cruel Gold

**Princesses Don't Need T****o Be Rescued**

By: LadyNightSky

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Disclaimer: No, not mine. Yet. :)

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**A/N: So here's a REAL chapter of PDNTBR xD. Also thanks to everyone who's been trying to help me kick SkYzLiLLGuRLiEE out of Fanfic; sadly, our efforts are bearing no fruit…**

**On with the story!!!**

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Chapter Two: Warm Honey and Cruel Gold

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He spun and tumbled, head over heels, through what seemed to be empty space, his limbs pinned to his body by some extreme force. His eyelids were instinctively screwed tightly shut, and with supreme effort, he opened his eyes as wide as he could. 

It was all for nothing because everything was midnight black. If it weren't for the nauseous feeling in his stomach and the pressure clamping down on him, he could've imagined he was asleep.

His eyes were watering, protesting their prolonged exposure to the cold air whipping across his face. Giving in, he closed them, and let himself be hurled through space.

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Musa clawed through the forest, feeling the dried tears on her face destroy her make up and make her features stiffen. What had she been thinking? The dramatic exit had been…well, dramatic and all, but had it been worth being lost? She didn't think so. 

She gave up, and plopped down onto the leaf strewn forest floor, laying flat on the ground, and gave a bitter laugh. If Stella, her best friend, could see her now, she'd have a heart attack, what with the dirt stains sure to be on her dress and the twigs entangled in her hair.

Gazing up at the flawless cerulean sky, she daydreamed about what it would be like to be someone else, anyone else, but the Princess of the Harmonic Nebula. She wished, as she had many times in the past, that she could switch places with Stella, who was an official journalist and an unofficial glamour icon. Neither father nor mother Stella had, and all the freedom in the world that came with being an orphan.

_Aw, damn, _Musa thought. _I shouldn't really think that. I mean, at least I know my parents. Stella has no clue who her parents were, and it's sick to want that, plus mean to Stell…_

Suddenly, Musa stiffened. She had sensed a slight tremor in the ground, a brief rustle of leaves; too big to be a forest animal and too small to be a quake. That left only one thing: _human._

Springing lithely to her feet, she slid into the cool shadows of the trees formed by the wane early morning sunlight, and waited tensely. Most likely, her father had sent guards after her, and they were crashing clumsily through the brush searching.

"What the fu-,"

The exclamation rang through the clearing. _Male, _Musa thought. _But only one voice…? Why would Dad only send ONE guard after me? _

Her eyes widened and she stifled a gasp as a man wearing a tattered levabike suit stumbled into the clearing, looking winded and bewildered. He had hair in the most curious shade, a dark magenta color, and burning gold eyes that swept around the clearing. Musa, unsure if this man was a guard or not, leaned closer.

_Crack._

_SHIT! _She thought. She glanced in panic at her arm, which had bent a bush over as she leaned. She looked back up at the man, hoping against all hope that he hadn't noticed the sound. Her heart sank. The man had narrowed his eyes, and was gazing a few feet to the left of where she was hiding. He had reached to his waist, as if for a sword, but Musa noticed that the scabbard on his belt was empty, and heaved a silent sigh of relief.

"Is…there anyone there?" the man called out, still squinting slightly off to the side of Musa. "I don't mean any harm. Do come out, I just want to know where I am."

The man's voice held a hint of impatience, despite the polite words, as if he _knew _someone was avoiding him. Musa debated a moment, then decided to reveal herself. If anything, her make-up streaked face would probably scare him to hell. Suppressing a grim chuckle, she stepped noiselessly out of her hiding place.

His back was to her. Apparently he'd turned to the other side of the clearing to search, but had frozen when he sensed he was not alone in the clearing any longer.

"Sir?" Musa asked hesitantly. He turned slowly to face her, and she felt his penetrating gaze sweep over her, studying her. She shivered. His eyes were so…golden. Like warm honey and cold metal at the same time. Contradictory. His face was strong, with wide panes and straight features. _Aristocrat?_ she wondered to herself. He was built like he'd been trained to fight, tutored in the art of war. _Maybe. _He was kinda cute. She gave him a half-smile, then her thoughts immediately flew to how she herself probably appeared.

Face caked in colors, dress ragged and covered with dirt stains, hair disheveled. Her smile slid off her face, and she self-consciously tried to straighten her skirt.

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Riven's brow furrowed as the girl's hands flew to her dress. _What was she _doing He wondered for the hundredth time where in the dimension he could possibly be. This place looked like the forest he'd just left, but there was a different…quality to it. The forest back home was dark and shadowy, a place where one could easily imagine werewolves and hags hiding in the shadows, where the trees rose like angry slashes of black paint against an inky sky. Here, it was…lighter? Was that the right word? The morning sunshine drove away the weary shadows of night, and birds sang harmoniously in the distance. Yeah, lighter was the word. 

His attention shifted to the girl again, and his gaze lingered on her face. He couldn't decipher her features clearly underneath all the gunk layered on her face. He frowned. Was it some kind of local tradition to walk around with…stuff…on your face? Was that why she'd hid from him when she first saw him? Because he was offending her with his austere face?

He'd heard of stranger things, and suddenly felt uncomfortable as her deep navy eyes widened and met his. _Heh. She's kind of pretty…_ he thought distantly, smiling at her. His own eyes widened, and he wiped the smile off his face, replacing it with a scowl. He needed to get home soon. No time to look at pretty girls. Even when they wore red silk gowns and had pale, flawless skin and shiny, luxurious dark hair.

"So." He cleared his throat. "Er…miss, could you please tell me where exactly I am?"

She cocked an eyebrow at him. "Where you are? Shouldn't you know that, milord?" Her voice was throaty and rich, like velvet, and somehow reminded him of melodies and songs.

But she'd addressed him as a lord. Was it local custom or had he unknowingly given her clues to his identity? It wasn't safe to be known as a noble in unfamiliar parts of the dimension, especially without armor, weapons, or bodyguards. He could be murdered, robbed, or any matter of gruesome things without any means of self-defense other than his fighting skills. He could handle himself extremely well, but against others who would be armed better than he…? Heh. Naw, he'd never be hurt. He could fight better than anyone he knew. He'd probably come away with only a few scratches.

Shaking his head, he resumed answering her question, and took immediate offense at the fact that she'd implied he didn't know directions.

"Well, _excuse_ me, wench, if I knew where I was, why would I be asking you? You're no beauty to hark after." His tone was haughty and dismissive, and he almost regretted it, as his chances of being helped were getting slimmer. Whatever. He could do it himself.

The girl inhaled sharply, then drew herself up to her full height, chin up, glaring balefully at him. "I only meant to inquire to the nature of your question. And now, if you'll pardon me, I should be off."

With that, she flounced off into the forest, muttering what Riven was sure were curses under her breath.

Glaring darkly after her, he stalked off in the opposite direction she'd vanished in, thinking rather venomous thoughts about girls who didn't know their place and put on ridiculous airs.

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**A/N: -Sweat drop- Yeah, okay, it was admittedly really difficult to keep Riven in character, I kept wanting to immediately push him and Musa together. Anyways, read, review, rave, hate. Shall update soon. Maybe. Sorry for length impediment. **


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